Aces split a pair of games against Olney in doubleheader

By Chris Damond

The Alexandria Aces traveled all the way up to OBGC Park on Sunday afternoon for a doubleheader against the Olney Cropdusters. Alexandria dropped the first game, 21-9, before smacking three homers in the second contest to win 9-4 in seven innings.

The Aces (20-10) are now six games ahead of the third-place Metropolitan Braves in the Cal Ripken League standings with under a week left in the regular season and only 2.5 games behind the first-place Bethesda Big Train. If Alexandria holds onto second, they’ll skip the play-in game on July 24 and automatically advance to the next round.

The first contest of the day was a continuation of a game earlier in the month, which was suspended with Olney up 10-5 in the fifth inning due to weather. The Cropdusters picked up right where they left off and bombarded the Aces with runs, outscoring them 11-4 on Sunday.

But Alexandria bounced back the next game, smacking three home runs after going down 3-0 early. CJ Boyd (Appalachian State) got the party started with a two-run shot in the fourth. All-star game MVP Jacob Friend (Davidson) singled the next at-bat, before Mike Eze (Georgetown) put the Aces in front with another two-run homer.

Eze has been arguably the most outstanding player this week. In yesterday’s win over Gaithersburg, he had two hits, one RBI, two stolen bases and six putouts in center field.

Brendan Harrity (Western Michigan) added a home run in the seventh that scored two more runs.

Despite the shortened game, the Aces still managed to record 13 hits in seven innings. Their offense was firing on all cylinders, but CJ Boyd was the standout. The Lewisville, North Carolina, native had a team-high three RBI off two hits and a sacrifice fly.

Alexandria native Ryan Osinski (Bucknell) took the mound for Alexandria and picked up the win. He registered six strikeouts in five innings of work and allowed three runs. All-star Ryan Brown (Ball State) sealed the deal, recording the last four outs of the game.

Alexandria’s defense backed up the pitching with some stellar plays, including a dazzling catch by Eddie Hacopian (Maryland) as he sprinted to snag a fly ball near the warning track in center field.

Next up, the Aces return home to Frank Mann Field on Tuesday night to face the Metropolitan Braves. First pitch is at 6:30 p.m.